Audio jack/speakers will detect sound, but won't play it.

[SalmonSailor]

So, today I was trying to fix some FPS lag issues I was having in games.
I took my GPU (GTX 970) out and put it back in again, and then I downloaded the newest drivers from the Nvidia site and installed them. Happy days, right?
Wrong. For some reason, since restarting my PC for the GPU drivers to take effect my speakers had stopped outputting audio.

I uninstalled the Nvidia HD audio drivers and restarted. Still no sound.
Uninstalled all audio drivers and restarted. All of the peripherals I have (Webcam mic, USB headset and speakers had default drivers installed). Still no sound.
I installed the audio drivers my mobo (Gigabye h87-hd3) manufacturer recommended on their website. Restarted. Still no sound.

I have run out of ideas.
My device manager shows no conflicts. All drivers are up-to-date. The speakers show that they are receiving audio signals in the 'Playback Devices menu', but the audio signals just aren't playing.

The speakers work, if I plug the jack into my phone the audio will play fine, so there is no issue there.

If I plug earphones into the rear jack, no sound plays, but the audio signal is still present in the Playback Devices menu. If I plug the speakers or earphones into the front jack, the same issue occurs.

Edit: USB (headset) and HDMI (monitor) audio still works fine.
I doubt I've shorted any jacks, because they're still detecting hardware and audio, also neither front nor back jacks seem to be working, but they detect hardware and audio signals.
This is Windows 10 64-bit.
Currently have High Definition Audio Drivers installed for the speakers. Did have Realtek High Definition Audio drivers, but they didn't work either, so I disconnected it.

 

[drjiga]

In the Sound applet in Control Panel, is the analog output set as the default?

Also, your motherboard has several 3.5 mm outputs, is there no sound for any of them?

 

[SalmonSailor]

in the Sound applet in Control Panel, is the Intel analog output set as the default?

In the "Playback Devices" menu (Sound applet), the speakers are the default device, but still plays no sounds, however it does pick up the sounds from the system and apps, as the bars fluctuate. Also right-clicking and pressing "test" does not play a sound, but the audio bars still spike.

 

[drjiga]

Try one of the other jacks. Make sure you didn't plug the headphones into the mic/ Line in jack by mistake.

 

[SalmonSailor]

Try one of the other jacks. Make sure you didn't plug the headphones into the mic/ Line in jack by mistake.

I haven't

 

[drjiga]

That's odd I pulled up your motherboard on the manufacturer web site and it shows that the board has at least 4 output jacks. Headphones can be plugged into one of the other output jacks, as long as it's not a "mic" or "line in". Realtek software lets you set any jack, be it, c/sub, rear, etc. to be the main output.

edit: line out changed to line in

 

[SalmonSailor]

That's odd I pulled up your motherboard on the manufacturer web site and it shows that the board has at least 4 output jacks. Headphones can be plugged into one of the other output jacks, as long as it's not a "mic" or "line in". Realtek software lets you set any jack, be it, c/sub, rear, etc. to be the main output.

edit: line out changed to line in

I'll re-install the RealTek drivers and see if this works

 

[SalmonSailor]

That's odd I pulled up your motherboard on the manufacturer web site and it shows that the board has at least 4 output jacks. Headphones can be plugged into one of the other output jacks, as long as it's not a "mic" or "line in". Realtek software lets you set any jack, be it, c/sub, rear, etc. to be the main output.

edit: line out changed to line in

Tried it. No jack works. I tried all 6 rear jacks and the front headphone one.
It detects the speakers and detects the audio, but doesn't play it

 

[drjiga]

Ok, double-check the Volume Mixer. In the bottom right corner where you have the speaker icon near the clock, right click on it and open Volume Mixer. Make sure all the sliders are turned up.

 

[SalmonSailor]

Ok, double-check the Volume Mixer. In the bottom right corner where you have the speaker icon near the clock, right click on it and open Volume Mixer. Make sure all the sliders are turned up.

Listen, I know you're only trying to help, but I have literally tried everything.
No sources are muted. All sliders are up.
The device is being detected. The drivers are installed correctly.
All power connectors inside my PC are correctly seated.
All enhancements in the properties menu are disabled.
It is the default device.

I took my GPU out and put it back in, that's the only major event between when the jacks worked and when they didn't.
Could I have possibly knocked something that could have messed with the jacks?
All jacks seem to have power, and I checked the PSU. It was all fine.

I'm ready to accept that I shorted the jacks, but this doesn't seem likely, as both the front and rear jacks are doing the same thing. Also, the devices are being detected still, so this seems doubly unlikely.

 

[drjiga]

This is a long shot, but create a Linux Live CD. Boot from CD and run Linux without installing. Test the sound.

 

[SalmonSailor]

This is a long shot, but create a Linux Live CD. Boot from CD and run Linux without installing. Test the sound.

I wouldn't know where to begin with that, sorry.
I'll probably buy a USB to line-out accessory, but thank you very much for your helpful attempts to try and diagnose the issues,

 

[drjiga]

Here are the instructions, in case you want to try. http/www.ubuntu.com/download/desktop/burn-a-dvd-on-windows

 

[Mountain_3]

Ugh I am having EXACT same problem, except I never removed my graphics card (GTX 760 Ti). I've been looking everywhere for hours but haven't found a solution. Got excited when I read this thread because this is exactly the problem but I guess not, huh? >.<
Guess I'll keep looking.